Why it's so important to figure out when a vital Atlantic Ocean current might collapse
Scientists know a current in the Atlantic ocean could collapse suddenly as the climate changes. The question of when matters to billions of people around the globe.
Deep in the Atlantic Ocean, there's a massive current the size of 8,000 Mississippi Rivers. Its role in the Earth's climate is so powerful that it determines weather from the equator to Europe, crop production in Africa and sea level rise on the East Coast.
Scientists say there's a risk this vital current could shut down as the climate gets hotter, a collapse that could have dire consequences worldwide.
Researchers have been trying to determine when the Atlantic might cross that tipping point. But answering that is no easy task.
Now, a finds the collapse of the current, which is known as the Atlantic meridional overturning circulation or AMOC,
